Conservative peer Lord Howard has said that prime minister Boris Johnson’s compromise on the Internal Market Bill does not go far enough to sway him to back the legislation in the House of Lords.
The change means that MPs must vote on invoking the bill before its powers could ever be triggered to override the EU Withdrawal Agreement. The PM agreed the alteration with Conservative MPs in a bid to stave off a rebellion in Parliament.
MPs are due to vote on the legislation next week, before the bill then proceeds to the House of Lords.
Lord Howard, who led the Conservative Party between 2003 and 2005, told the BBC: "The government is still asking Parliament to break international law."
Howard suggested that the bill had little prospect of being approved in the Lords, adding that the issue may “go beyond” a standoff between the Commons and the Lords over the issue.
He said: "I don't know what my colleagues will do, but as far as I'm concerned this is a matter of principle."
On Wednesday, Scotland’s advocate general Lord Keen became the second senior government legal officer to resign over the bill, following the resignation of Sir Jonathan Jones, the Government Legal Department’s permanent secretary.
Meanwhile, MEP Guy Verhofstadt has taken to Twitter to say that the European Parliament will not approve a trade deal between the UK and the EU unless the Internal Market Bill is “rectified”.
Verhofstadt said that the PM’s willingness to compromise on the bill was irrelevant to the fact that the legislation still breaches international law and credited US presidential candidate Joe Biden for firing off a warning to the UK that the Good Friday Agreement cannot be undermined by Brexit.
Verhofstadt tweeted: “[Joe] Biden is right. Boris Johnson might not care about international law or the Good Friday Agreement, but there are many who do! The world is watching with disbelief."
Elsewhere, former transport secretary Chris Grayling has been handed a new advisory role at Hutchison Ports, which operates key UK terminals such as Harwich and Felixstowe.
The MP’s register of financial interests indicates that Grayling will be paid for seven hours work a week for one year, and his acceptance of the post has been approved by Parliamentary watchdog the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments [ACOBA].
Grayling reassured the regulator that he would not advise the company on its commercial maritime business nor any risks or opportunities associated with Brexit, in order to hand them an unfair advantage.
The regulator added that his role will be limited to advising the firm on its environmental strategy and engagement with local enterprise bodies,
Grayling must comply with the limitations to his role and is unable to lobby ministers on the firm’s behalf or give advice on UK government tenders until July 2021.
He left the cabinet in July 2019 when Boris Johnson took over as prime minister and has faced much criticism for his three-year stint as transport secretary following a string of poor decisions.
Grayling did win the backing of the PM in his bid to become chair of the Commons Intelligence and Security Committee in July this year, but eventually quit the group after MPs voted for fellow Tory MP Julian Lewis to take on the role.
Yet, Grayling is not the only figure associated with Parliament to be finding success in the job market, amid reports that former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson has also found himself a new advisory role with gambling giant Flutter, the entity behind brands such as Paddy Power and Betfair.
Watson, who stood down as an MP prior to the December general election, campaigned for stricter rules on gambling during his spell in politics.
Flutter said in a statement that Watson will “bring a fresh and robust voice into the business” as it seeks to protect “vulnerable customers” and allow gambling to be enjoyed in a safe manner.
Watson said: "I have a long-standing interest in this sector and consistently called for action to protect those that may be potentially vulnerable to harm.
"In taking on this role in Flutter, I intend to get under the bonnet of the business. I strongly believe that working collaboratively with Flutter in this way will allow me to continue to drive positive change".
Photo by Lucas Davies on Unsplash
